iCircuit vs CircuitShepherd
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
iCircuit
Design and simulate analog and digital electronic circuits in real-time. This app offers a comprehensive component library, built-in test equipment, and the ability to create custom elements. It's ideal for learning, prototyping, and validating designs without physical components.
- Real-time circuit simulation
- Extensive component library (300+)
- Built-in test equipment (multimeter, oscilloscope)
- Programmable Arduino and PIC microcontroller support
- Custom element creation and sharing
- Audio simulation
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iCircuit is the premier iPhone and iPad app for designing, simulating, and learning analog and digital electronics. Its advanced simulation engine provides real-time, always-on analysis so your circuits stay powered and live, just like working with real components. Use it like a CAD tool: add components, wire them up, and set their properties. But iCircuit is unlike typical CAD apps because it is always simulating. You do not stop to take a measurement or spend time configuring reports. Instead, you just play with the circuit as you normally would, with the power on. Build circuits with over 300 components, from simple resistors and LEDs to programmable Arduinos (Uno, Nano, Mega, ESP8266, ESP32), PIC microcontrollers, and 60 4000/7400-series digital ICs (more available with Pro). Connect elements, adjust values, and instantly see the results. BUILT-IN TEST EQUIPMENT • Multimeter: Probe any point to read voltage, current, and power • Oscilloscope: Track multiple signals with touch-controlled time scale, stacked/unstacked views, FFT analysis, and Bode plots • Gauges: Visualize voltages, currents, and frequencies directly in your circuit • Signal generators and configurable sources EXTENSIVE COMPONENT LIBRARY • Programmable Arduinos (Uno, Nano, Mega, ESP8266, ESP32) • Programmable PIC microcontrollers (assembly and HEX files, more available with Pro) • Power: Voltage regulators (78xx, LM317), sources, dependent sources, power jacks, and simulated antennas • Analog: Resistors, capacitors, inductors, diodes, BJTs, MOSFETs, thermistors, triodes, and tetrodes • Digital: Logic gates (AND, OR, NAND, NOR, XOR), JK and D flip-flops, and 60 4000/7400-series ICs (180+ available with Pro) • ADCs and DACs • Sensors and displays: LEDs, 7-segment, NeoPixels, matrix displays, thermistors • Electromechanical: Motors, servos, SPST/SPDT and DPST/DPDT switches, push buttons, relays, and speakers CREATE CUSTOM ELEMENTS Build sub-circuits and custom elements to componentize your designs and create reusable modules. Share your custom elements with others via the iCircuit Gallery. AUDIO SIMULATION Hear your circuits. Speakers, buzzers, and microphones produce real audio output. Perfect for students learning electronics, hobbyists prototyping projects, and engineers validating designs, all without burning out a single component. ABOUT ICIRCUIT PRO (OPTIONAL) iCircuit is a complete app with a one-time purchase. iCircuit Pro is optional and adds extra components (including more PICs and a larger 4000/7400 IC library) and helps fund ongoing development. Pro is not required for core simulation or everyday circuit design. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
CircuitShepherd
Automate electronic circuit design with AI-driven parameter optimization. Define schematics and design goals, and the software finds optimal part values in real-time. Save time on calculations and iterations with this intuitive tool.
- Automated parameter optimization
- AI-driven circuit engineering
- Real-time design goal finding
- Intuitive user interface
- Schematic definition
- Part value calculation
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CircuitShepherd provides you with analog-design superpowers by doing automated parameter optimization it in realtime! It's a novel Electronic Design Automation software for AI driven electronics circuit engineering. You define an arbitrary schematic including specific design goals and CircuitShepherd will find the right part values for you. This is achieved by combining traditional circuit simulation techniques with AI driven parameter estimation algorithms and finally a simple and intuitive user interface. It’s easy to learn, fast to use and it will save you a lot of time by automating your daily calculation and iteration tasks. CircuitShepherd is free to use immediately (with very basic features). The full version with all features enabled is available via in-app purchase (subscription-based). Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.circuitshepherd.com/privacy-policy-iOS.html
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: iCircuit at 61% against CircuitShepherd's 0%. iCircuit also leads on rating (3.8 vs 1.5) and ratings volume (134 vs 2). CircuitShepherd's advantage is price (Free vs $12.99). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
CircuitShepherd is free to download; iCircuit costs $12.99 up front. iCircuit sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and CircuitShepherd sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $6.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
iCircuit holds the better App Store score, 3.8 against 1.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iCircuit has 134 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 61% of iCircuit's written reviews are positive against 0% of CircuitShepherd's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and June 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | iCircuit | CircuitShepherd |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $12.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 3.8 (134 ratings) — better | 1.5 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 61.1% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 134 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | #186 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.2 — better | 14.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 126 MB | 49 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Krueger Systems, Inc. | Josef Woess |
Customer experience
iCircuit
CircuitShepherd
Bugs and requests
iCircuit
Reported bugs
4 issues- Oscilloscope and meter functions not working properly
- Saving and loading circuits can be unreliable
- Inconsistent behavior when rotating/flipping components
- Crashes when working with larger or more complex circuits
Requested features
5 requests- More components (e.g. transformers, triodes, MOSFETs)
- Ability to create custom components
- Frequency domain analysis (Bode plots, FFT)
- Improved wiring and component placement controls
- Better support for AC circuits and motors
CircuitShepherd
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
iCircuit
- iCircuit Pro (Monthly)$1.991 Month
- iCircuit Pro (Yearly)$14.991 Year
CircuitShepherd
- full version$6.991 Month
Questions
Is iCircuit free?
Is CircuitShepherd free?
Which has better reviews, iCircuit or CircuitShepherd?
Do iCircuit or CircuitShepherd have ads?
Which is updated more often, iCircuit or CircuitShepherd?
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